The second one-day international (ODI) between India and England faced an unexpected disruption during the second innings due to a floodlight malfunction at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack, leaving the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) red-faced.
The embarrassing moment occurred during the second innings as the Men in Blue were chasing a daunting target of 305 runs. The hosts scored 48 without loss in 6.1 overs before one of the floodlight towers started malfunctioning, according to Indian media.
After the first ball of the seventh over, the lights went off once again, plunging the field into darkness.
The umpires promptly halted play as players remained on the field before eventually leaving, awaiting further instructions from ground officials. Meanwhile, the Indian players were spotted having a chat in the dugout during the delay.
The match remained halted for about 18-20 minutes before it started coming on and later resumed. The exact reason for the malfunction is yet to be known, but the incident sparked a meme fest on social media leaving BCCI embarrassed.
Some of the social media users slammed the “world’s richest cricket board” for not having proper working floodlights, while some called it a “Karma”.
Opener Ben Duckett and Joe Root hit half-centuries to help England reach 304 all out in the second one-day international against India on Sunday as they look to keep the series alive.
The three-match ODI series comes ahead of the 50-over Champions Trophy tournament starting in Pakistan and Dubai on February 19.
